My Greatest Purchases; 2019 National Recap Part #7

After writing 6 posts recapping my memorable experience at the 2019 National Sports Collectors Convention, I've reached the end of this mini-series. Today will be my final post overviewing what my Dad and I brought back from the show in Chicago.

Baseball card show recap posts, no matter how large or tiny the event, are some of my favorite things to write. In addition to attending the shows and having a blast while I'm there, I get to relive the experience, to a certain extent and share it here on the blog. It's almost like a continuation of the show itself.

All things considered, I can't say whether the 2019 National was better or worse than the 2018 show. The Chicago show was definitely larger than the Cleveland one, but I ended up bringing back around the same number of cards from what I can remember.

I will say that I made more extravagant purchases at this year's show which you'll see later on in this post. There was no booth allowing customers to fill an 800-count box for $50 like there was last year, so I guess I valued quality a tad more than quantity this time around.

The Betts rookie card from Stadium Club is the 2nd Mookie rookie in my collection ('14 Chrome Update was the first). In addition to the Stadium Club rookie, my Dad and I came together and purchased 5 spectacular cards; the best of the best from our time in Chicago.

When Cardboard Connection first posted about 2018 Topps Heritage, I was ecstatic to learn that the Seattle Pilots would have a mini autograph set. However, the pack odds (1:3,464 packs) were unbelievably low.

When I, unsurprisingly, didn't pull any out of the packs that I opened, I gave up my hopes of landing one of these rarities. That is until one caught my eye as I was peering through one of the thousands of display cases at the show.

I'd never heard of Bernie Smith before in my life, and it's a little absurd to pay decent money for an autograph of someone you're not familiar with. However, my Dad and I collect anything Seattle Pilots. Now that we've completed the 1969 and 1970 Topps team sets, it was time to move onto the oddballs.

Topps Heritage autographs are absolutely beautiful, and Bernie Smith's Pilots card is no exception. Given what the other players' autos are going for on COMC, I'm glad that I was able to land this card at a reasonable price.

Now that Bryce Harper's moved onto Philadelphia, the Nationals' next franchise player is 20-year old Juan Soto, one of the top tier rookies from 2018. I didn't even plan on purchasing one of his autographs, but the price on this 2019 Topps Gypsy Queen Fortune Teller auto was too good to pass up.

I have my reservations when it comes to Gypsy Queen, but I've always praised the Fortune Teller inserts. I didn't even know that these had autographed versions until I laid eyes on the Soto card. Roughly 10 minutes later, I bit the bullet and added this beauty to my collection.

Since the card was in a display case and I never thought to ask, I didn't notice that the card was serial numbered (#/50) until I forked over the money. The low numbering makes this beautiful insert auto even more special, not to mention it's signed on-card as well.

The Soto card gives me 4 autographs of the big-name rookies from last season (Devers, Torres, and Hoskins). The fact that there are still 5 stellar rookie autos from 2018 out there that I don't have (Albies, Acuña, Ohtani, Andujar, Buehler) highlights how historic the 2018 rookie class was.

Nonetheless, I couldn't be happier with the card as well as its price. With all the shiny refractors and parallels out there nowadays, it's nice to take a break, every now and then, with a simpler card that's still a standout. 

As much as I believe Juan Soto could be the next superstar of Baseball, the Hall of Famer autographed cards are where it's at when it comes to a show like this. 

Soto is still in the process of establishing himself as one of Baseball's best players, but a guy like Rickey Henderson has already accomplished that 10 times over. I originally wanted a different autograph of the stolen base king, but it was scooped up by some other collector before my Dad and I got the chance to return to this vendor.

However, I can't really complain about a Topps Tier One autograph of Rickey Henderson, especially since he's shown as a member of the Oakland A's, and the signature is on-card. Truth be told, I wouldn't have settled for a Henderson auto on any other team.

Like the Soto, this card is serial numbered out of 50, but it's Rickey's gorgeous signature that sets this card apart from most other modern autographed cards. 

As fabulous as the Henderson auto is, the Tier One design leaves a little to be desired. Thankfully, this next hit is absolutely breathtaking.

Never in my life did I think that I'd have my very own Topps Transcendent autographed card due to the exorbitant price for a case of this product. 

These portrait cards are a part of Topps' most expensive product, yet I was able to find this gorgeous Pedro Martinez auto for less than the average price of a hobby box.

The artwork is like an upgraded version of Topps Gallery; it's absolutely stunning and expertly created. As for the autograph, it's legible (something you can't say about most players' signatures today) and is signed beautifully. Seriously, there's nothing about this card that I can critique.

The gold frame highlights just how high-end the Transcendent product is, yet, somehow, the dealer was able to sell this particular card for an incredibly reasonable price. Needless to say, it'll be a fantastic addition to my Red Sox PC.

Although I was involved in purchasing each of the autographed cards above, I had nothing to do with the last card from the trip to Chicago. I present to you the greatest card from The National.

This is a Frank Robinson autograph.

This is a Frank Robinson autograph from Luminaries, another high-end Topps product.

This is a Frank Robinson autograph from Luminaries, another high-end Topps product, serial numbered 1/1.

This is the greatest card that my Dad and I brought back from The National.

Like I said, I was not involved whatsoever in purchasing this 1/1 autograph. In fact, I only knew about it when my Dad showed me the encased card midway through the day on Thursday, our first full day at the show.

I'm not familiar enough with Luminaries to know what makes this a 1/1, but I do know a little bit about the product. It's a very high-end set that comes with 1 encased autographed card, numbered to 10 or less, in a box.

I would never have thought that a Frank Robinson auto would be our best pickup from The National. Because we're such avid Cubs and Red Sox fans, I would've expected something from one of those 2 teams. 

The more I study this card, however, the more impressed and intrigued I am. Any 1/1 card is automatically special, but a 1/1 autograph of one of the greatest sluggers of all-time is truly outstanding.

Retired Player Autograph Time; 2019 National Recap Part #5

My desire to collect as wide of a range of Baseball cards has possible has both benefits and drawbacks.

While this doesn't always allow me to zero in on a particular part of my collection and devote all of my attention to it, my willingness to collect almost anything that interests me strengthens my collection as a whole.

Furthermore, it allows me to branch out into various parts of the hobby, from vintage sets to brand new releases.

I tried to maintain this openmindedness at The National this year and focus on all parts of my collection. In some instances, I'd focus solely on vintage sets from my want list. Other times, I'd branch out into stuff like oddballs and, in this case, retired player autographs.

Whether I purchase the cards at the show or pull them from packs, I've acquired my fair share of relic cards and autographs, particularly over the last 3 few years.

As much as I love the major hits that I've pulled, most of my auto/relic inventory consists of modern-day jersey relics or cards of semi-stars from the 70s.

Though my Dad initiated this mini-project, I helped him choose some of the retired player autographs that he purchased during our time at the show. The budget that we set for ourselves forced us to make some tough decisions regarding which cards to purchase and which to leave behind.

No matter how hard I try, I could never steer the focus of my collection in just 1 or 2 directions. Rather, my curiosity inspires me to venture out in multiple directions, specifically the retired player autographs that we picked up at the show.

Because I have more Boston Red Sox autos and relics than any other MLB team, we boosted this part of our collection by adding some new players' autographs to the mix. 

Earlier this week, I mentioned how surprising it was to see Red Sox cards priced reasonably which certainly isn't the norm at the Boston area shows. Though the selection of Sox cards isn't as great, I'll take lower prices any day of the week, especially if I can land some nice cards, like the Bernie Carbo auto above.

One of my parameters when deciding on which autographs to purchase was whether the signature is on-card or on-sticker. Like many collectors, I try to steer clear of sticker autos, especially if I'm considering spending big money on a card.

Thankfully, most of what we purchased featured on-card autos. Whether the cards are scanned or shown in-person, on-card autos simply blow sticker signatures out of the water. Thankfully, Topps avoids sticker autos nowadays, for the most part, though I can't say the same about Panini.

As I mentioned, a reasonable portion of my relics and autographs are of semi-stars and All-Stars from the 70s and 80s. Because I collect cards of many guys from that era as well, this seems to translate into the hits that I purchase at the show.

They might not be as flashy as a rookie phenom's autograph from Topps Chrome, but I'm perfectly happy with autographs of Dave Parker and Dave Concepcion, both of whom were very well-respected semi-stars who played for championship teams in the 70s.

Better yet, the cards are both on-card, and these 70s players have must better signatures than today's stars. Dave Parker's auto, in particular, is much easier to decipher than today's stars like Chris Sale.

Generally, I lean more towards Panini cards that hide the logoless caps and uniforms to the best of their ability. It's hard to cover this up completely, but they did a decent job with this Rollie Fingers autograph.

I think I'd have less of a problem with Panini as a whole if they decreased the number of sticker autos in their sets. However, the combination of logoless uniforms and sticker autos often turns me away from their hits. I'd rather stick to base cards and parallels from sets like Chronicles and Prizm instead.

Nonetheless, this is my first Rollie Fingers autographed card, and his signature, like Parker's and Concepcion's, is beautiful and clear.

The black borders make the cards challenging to scan, but I'm incredibly impressed with the 2004 Topps Retired Signature autographs. The 2 autos above are my first pickups from this set, though I've seen many collectors praise this product over the last few years.

The Bruce Sutter auto is a great addition to my Cubs PC, especially since this is my first auto of the Hall of Fame reliever. As much as I love everything about this card, Cepeda's on-card auto with the Atlanta Braves is spectacular, especially since his entire signature fits in the designated space.

The black borders only enhance the cards and make the blue ink pop even more. The fact that both of these guys are in the Hall of Fame is even better, especially since it allows me to enhance my collection of autographs even more. 

In the long run, I could see myself trying to complete this autograph set, though I'd have to put a significant portion of my funds towards these cards. Though I haven't examined the checklist, I assume there are some expensive cards to chase.

As much as I love the retired player signatures of Sutter and Cepeda, my favorite autograph of the group is the 2014 Topps Tribute card above of Fred Lynn, a sepia parallel numbered out of just 35 copies. 

He may not have achieved the HOF status that most assumed he would, especially following his historic 1975 season, but Lynn had some fabulous years with the Red Sox and even the Angels. If he hadn't left Boston, I'm sure he would've ended up in Cooperstown.

The last autograph of the haul follows the same pattern as the others; a fabulous on-card signature of a terrific player. This is also my first Baseball card autograph of Lynn, though, with a gorgeous signature like that, it may not be the last.

Best 30 Cards From All 30 Teams; AL East

At first, I wanted to create 1 post featuring my best card from all 30 MLB teams. I thought it would be really interesting to have 1 card from every Baseball team in 1 total post, but I soon discovered how difficult it would prove.

When the idea of showcasing all 30 cards together in 1 post was still a reality, I began brainstorming which cards I'd select for each and every club. Some teams, like the Cubs, Yankees, and Angels, had a ton of different options to choose from.

Others, like the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers, seemed to have no legitimate candidate for the "best card." While it doesn't necessarily have to be a hit, relics and autographs usually make up the top tier cards in my collection, though this isn't always the case.

Anyway, before I get to the post itself, I should briefly go over what this series is going to be like. Basically, for the next 6 posts, I'll be showing off my best card from all 30 MLB teams. However, I won't be going strictly off of value since there are numerous factors that come into play.

As you'll soon see, my best doesn't always mean necessitate an extremely valuable card, for there are a couple of teams of which I don't own a highly sought after rookie card or autograph.

I'll be writing these posts on and off for the next 10 days or so, in between the Baseball card show recap posts that I'll start tomorrow. I'm hoping, through these posts, that the viewers will gain insight into my collection and learn things that even I didn't know about my collection.

I'll be making my way through the league, so these posts will start with the 5 AL East clubs; the Orioles, Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, and Blue Jays. 

While I have marquee cards from some of these teams, this isn't the case for the latter 2, forcing me to do some digging to discover the top card from each of these franchises.

Baltimore Orioles

This pick shouldn't really come as a surprise, for I placed this 2018 Topps Archives Rookie History auto of Jim Palmer at #1 on my top 5 Orioles relics/autographs list a couple of weeks ago. Out of all 5 AL East teams, this was by far the easiest decision for me to make.

This card, more so than any other Orioles card that I own, has a distinct story behind it; I purchased a redemption card for this autograph at the Baseball card show a few months back for the same price as a blaster box of cards. Now, this rookie reprint auto has become the best Orioles card in my collection.

There's different serial numbering for each of the Topps Rookie History autos, and Palmer's happens to be out of 125 copies. While I'd prefer to pull a card like this from a pack myself, I paid far less for this than I would for a hobby box of Archives, and Palmer's a better name than most of the guys in the set.

Boston Red Sox

In this series, I'm most excited for the chance to display cards that I haven't had the chance to or decided not to showcase on the blog beforehand. One of these cards is an absolutely gorgeous encased autograph relic out of Topps Luminaries, an on-card auto that I picked up at the Baseball card show earlier this year,

Admittedly, this was a splurge purchase from the Mansfield show earlier this year, but I opted not to feature it on the blog until now. Numbered 2/10, the card is absolutely breathtaking, and it features an autograph of one of my favorite Red Sox players of all-time.

New York Yankees

Although I've only just begun this series, I'm certain that choosing my best New York Yankees card will be one of the most challenging decisions that I'll have to make. Considering the wide variety of Yankees cards that I have, from vintage cards to printing plates, deciding on just 1 wasn't easy.

However, my 1962 Topps Mickey Mantle card is on a higher level than every other Yankees card that I own. Vintage Mantle base cards can hold a tremendous value depending on the card's condition, and a 3.5 isn't too shabby considering how profound the damage is on the wood-bordered set.

Even though I have some pretty awesome Yankees cards of guys like Whitey Ford, Gleyber Torres, and even Babe Ruth, there's something about Mickey Mantle that makes him the most collectible player in Baseball history. I cherish this unbelievable '62 Topps base card that I have of his, and that's why I selected this card as the best New York Yankees card in my collection.

Tampa Bay Rays

Although I love the style of these mojo refractor cards from 2019 Bowman, I'm hoping that this Wander Franco card won't be the best Tampa Bay Rays card in my collection for long. I hope to sell this card on eBay very soon, for I'd rather cash in on this card while these mega box exclusive parallels are still hot.

This card was an extremely recent pull, for I landed it out of a Target mega box last weekend. Immediately, I listed it on eBay, and I've since had 4 people start "watching" the item. Franco is a top tier prospect at just 18-years old. 

The chances of him living up to the hype surrounding him now, in my opinion, are slim, so I'd rather sell this card and choose the Gypsy Queen framed relic that I have of Evan Longoria to take Franco's place on this list.

Toronto Blue Jays

The final team, the Toronto Blue Jays, was an extremely difficult one to decide on. I don't have any valuable Blue Jays cards or Vladimir Guerrero Jr rookies. This forced me to be more creative when it came to my choice since there were no immediate options that came to mind.

After pondering this decision for a while, I decided on my 1 and the only rookie card of the late Roy Halladay. A member of the 2019 HOF class, my one rookie card of Doc is from 1999 Topps Finest, and it still has the protective coating over the chrome card.

Highly-desired Blue Jays cards aren't exactly common like the Red Sox and Yankees, so it definitely required more thinking as to which card I'd choose for Toronto. Nevertheless, I'm pleased with my decision, because Halladay's rookie truly is the best Blue Jays card in my collection.

PC Overview; Reggie Jackson

I'm not quite sure whether this will become a reoccurring series on the blog like top 5 cards and frankenset pages, but I was eager to try something new with today's post. Rather than sticking to a traditional top 5 cards post for one of my many player collections, I've decided to do a complete PC overview.

Whether or not I continue with this series of posts, I suppose I should briefly explain what a PC overview is. Basically, I'll be going in depth regarding one of my player collections. 

Today's subject is Reggie Jackson, a gold tier PC. I'll be showing off cards as well as pieces of memorabilia and other PC items that I haven't had the chance to showcase before on the blog.

As you'll soon see, I have some pretty cool Reggie Jackson PC pieces, but I've never really had the right time to incorporate them into a blog post. Now, I finally have the chance to include all those pieces and go a little more in-depth than I would in, say, a top 5 cards post for the same player.

Although I collect cards of 250 different players, I don't have quite as many options for PC overview posts as I do for top 5 cards. The whole idea behind these player collection overview posts is to explore more than just Baseball cards, meaning that I'd like to showcase memorabilia and even some oddballs.

I can do a top 5 cards post for any of the guys that I collect, but PC overviews will be a bit more challenging. Still, I'm excited to write this post and see where it goes. I really enjoy collecting Reggie Jackson for numerous reasons, mainly because there are so many different things out there to collect of Mr. October. 

I vividly remember the first player collections, Duke Snider, Ivan Rodriguez, Catfish Hunter, and Harmon Killebrew, and I'm certain that Reggie Jackson wasn't too far behind them. I've been collecting cards of the 14-time All-Star for years now. Following last weekends card show, I have 147 total cards of Mr. October in my player collection.

I also purchased my first serial numbered card of Jackson at last Sunday's Shriner's Baseball card show, an orange parallel from 2018 Topps High Tek. I must say, I originally thought that the orange background combined with the gold jersey would be overwhelming, but I couldn't be more wrong. 

It's totally a winning combination and the low serial numbering (7/25), makes it even better. Although serial numbered cards of retired players are fairly hard to come by, I'm hoping that this won't be the last one I see of Reggie Jackson.

Reggie's rookie season in 1969 allowed for only 1 card to be produced of the 1973 AL MVP in the entire 60s decade. Thus, virtually all of the vintage Reggie Jackson cards can be found in the 1970s, whether it's Topps Flagship or a more oddball product like SSPC.

Excluding his base card in my 1972 Topps complete set, my oldest Reggie Jackson card dates back to 1973 Topps. Following that year, I have a few more vintage cards of the 2-time World Series MVP on the Oakland A's before he went to the Orioles, Yankees, and Angels later on in his career.

I may be a huge stickler for oddballs, but nothing can beat that 1975 Topps card. The blue and orange borders combined with the green uniform and photo is unbeatable. 

Now, cards are nice enough, and I enjoy featuring them on the blog as much as anyone, but the whole point of PC overviews is to showcase pieces that otherwise may not be featured on the blog. 

While these may look like traditional cards at first glance, and I suppose they are, in reality, these are actually 1983 Star panels in which 3 cards are grouped together. They're kind of like the box toppers that Topps Heritage used to do except these panels can actually be separated into 3 different cards.

I have other Star cards in my collection as this company created a surplus of different mini sets centered around certain players. I've always gone back and forth as to if I should separate the panels into individual cards. 

On one hand, I'd be able to boost my Reggie Jackson PC by a substantial number of cards. By contrast, the panels themselves, especially with the gold A's uniforms, look so fantastic that I'd almost feel guilty taking them apart.

Not limited to just the Oakland Athletics, I also have Star panels that feature Jackson as a member of the New York Yankees and the California Angels. These cards, combined with the Oakland A's panels, could add 18 cards to my Reggie Jackson player collection. 

I'm going to have to decide whether 6 panels or 18 additional cards in the Reggie Jackson PC is the better choice. Still, there's one thing that cannot be denied; these Star cards are awesome, especially since the borders match the respective team colors.

I'm fairly certain that I've shown this booklet card on the blog before, but there was no way that I could leave it out when discussing the finest pieces of Reggie Jackson memorabilia in my collection. This dual relic, the only booklet card in my entire collection, is from 2017 Panini National Treasures, an unbelievably high-end product.

Like many of the sets from which I purchase individual cards, I'll likely never open a box of National Treasures in my lifetime. With that being said, I love this Reggie Jackson card, though I wish one of the jersey swatches was either green or gold.

The booklet is very polished and elegant, much like the entire National Treasures set, and it came with the one-touch case when I purchased the card at a Baseball card show several months back for roughly the price of a blaster box of cards.

While I've previously featured the NT booklet, there's one last piece of Reggie Jackson memorabilia that I have yet to showcase in any blog post. This was actually purchased on the same day as the card above. Needless to say, that Baseball card show trip was primarily centered around Mr. October.

Every once in a while, my Dad and I discover something so special and perfect for our collection that we simply feel obligated to splurge and add it to our collection. This is exactly how we felt when we stumbled upon this framed Sports Illustrated cover from the early 1970s, autographed by the Hall of Famer himself.

If the cover featured Jackson on any other team besides the Athletics, I doubt that we would've purchased it. However, because he's shown as a member of the Oakland A's as well as the iconic gold jersey, the framed cover was simply perfect for our collection.

Along with the Red Sox and Cubs, the Expos, Pirates, and Oakland A's are my favorite Baseball teams, hence why I collect so many players from each of those MLB clubs. There aren't many players that I could justify splurging for a framed autograph magazine cover of, but Reggie Jackson, admittedly, is one of them.

Team Collectors; Round 2

If you saw my team collector's package post, you know that I recently joined an online group dedicated to boosting one's team collection. An opening for a Tier II Red Sox collector caught my attention in early January and within 2 weeks, I had my first ever team collector's package in-hand.

I've developed a routine of sorts as to how often I send out packages to be matched with an equal number of Red Sox cards in the mail. It's been about a month since my last package from the team collector's arrived in the mail, so it's looking like this will be a once a month type of thing in terms of how often I receive these packages.

While I've been collecting Red Sox cards for as long as I can remember, I've always focused my attention on adding to my player collections of certain players rather than focusing on Red Sox cards as a whole. 

Therefore, while I've amassed large player collection totals of guys like Wade Boggs and Manny Ramirez, I haven't dedicated resources towards improving my entire Red Sox collection as a whole. Through the team collectors, I'm able to change that.

Even though I haven't quite figured out how I plan on organizing my Red Sox team collection, joining this group back in January was a major step towards boosting my entire Red Sox card collection. 

The next step for me in this unfamiliar process is to develop a method or organizing these cards and create an online inventory. But first, I'll do a recap of what my 2nd team collectors trade package had in store for me. 

2015 Topps Archives may just be my favorite set of the product's history simply because of the phenomenal products featured in the checklist. 1957, 1976, and 1983 Topps are all featured in this edition of Topps Archives, and through exciting photographs and top-notch recreation of past sets, Topps was extraordinarily successful with the '15 Archives product.

The Hanley Ramirez card is a double, but the rest of these are new, likely because this set was released before I began buying retail and hobby boxes at the level that I do now. It's hard to fault this set, especially when it provides me with a new Mookie Betts card for my collection.

Even though I purchased 2 blaster boxes of 2018 Topps Big League, many of the cards throughout the 400-card checklist evaded me, including each and every one of these Red Sox cards that feature absolutely fabulous photography, especially for a low-end set. 

Though it's a tough call, I have to give Mookie the nod once again for a fabulous action shot of the reigning AL MVP making a stellar catch in right field. It's also nice to see Bradley Jr. and E-Rod in this set since Topps neglects to feature these 2 in some of their other products.

Though I've seen a few Honus Bonus cards on other blogs and YouTube channels, the Tier I Red Sox team collector provided me with my very first cards from the set, cards that are also intended to be utilized in a game of sorts. 

The glossy cards feature codes that can be scratched off on the back of each card. I suppose since these cards are from 2018, that they can no longer be used. However, if Honus Bonus returns in 2019, I could participate in this contest of sorts.

In addition to Bogaerts and Wright, I was sent a Honus Bonus card of Craig Kimbrel which will go directly into the Kimbrel Collection. By now, thanks to the 2-3 cards I received of the 2017 AL reliever of the year in this specific package, my Craig Kimbrel PC total has surpassed 120 total cards with absolutely zero duplicates.

Oh yeah, there were also a ton of parallels thrown in this package, one of my favorite types of Baseball cards to collect. Currently, when it comes to Baseball card collecting, the sheer number of different parallels is starting to get out of hand, but there's something to be said about parallel cards when done right.

Although they're some of my favorite cards to collect, because of all the different available parallel cards, I'm struggling to figure out what to do with all my Red Sox team collection cards, in particular, the parallels.

Once I figure out the proper way to organize my Red Sox team collection, I can see myself becoming a more active team collector than I currently am. Player collections, like Porcello and Martinez, will likely take priority, but any doubles or cards of non-PC guys will be welcomed into my team collection alongside cards like the Josh Reddick and John Valentin shown above.

Other than the Christmas tradition of purchasing a box of Bowman's Best, I don't usually go for too many prospect-based products simply because they don't pique my interest like they do for others. 

However, I'll gladly trade most cards from any other team in order to add to my Red Sox team collection, especially for cards as eye-catching as the Talent Pipeline insert card from last year, featuring one minor leaguer from each level of the Red Sox organization.

It doesn't matter how high or how low the numbering is, serial numbered cards are always welcome in my collection, especially if they're parallels as well, the perfect combination for a Baseball card. These 2 cards, in particular, are numbered out of 1,350 and 1,959 respectively and both feature key members of the 2007 World Champion Boston Red Sox team.

The 2nd team collectors package also granted me a gold refractor from Bowman Chrome, numbered out of 50, just like the first time. The last package featured Kevin Youkilis while trade #2 delivered with it a gold refractor rookie of former star reliever Daniel Bard, a parallel that appears far more orange than gold when scanned.

Both packages have also included Red Sox autographs, 3 of them to be exact. While they don't feature big name players, I'm not looking for nor am I expecting the biggest name when it comes to these autographs. Last time, I received Will Middlebrooks and Mike Napoli and was very satisfied, especially since I hadn't sent any autographs out with that trade package.

This time, the highlight of the 3 autographs was a Ryan Lavarnway auto from Bowman Sterling, an incredibly high-end set. Lavarnway is a name I recognize from the early 2010s Red Sox teams while I never knew Kelly Shoppach played in Boston, and Keury de la Cruz is not a name I'm familiar with at all.

But that's alright because when I receive a package from the team collectors, I'm looking for different cards than, say when I'm at a Baseball card show.

As far as my team collection goes, I'm looking for as many cards as possible that I don't have in my collection yet. As for the name, that comes second fiddle. 

After all, it is called a team collection for a reason.

My Top 5 Chicago Cubs Cards

As far as Chicago Cubs cards go, I always seem to have better luck when pulling fantastic Cubs hits than I do for any other MLB team, including my favorite club, the Boston Red Sox.

I tend to miss out on pulling big-name Red Sox hits from packs of cards. Case and point, my top 10 Red Sox cards list, a countdown that consisted of 10 total cards, only 2 of which I actually pulled from a pack of cards. The rest were either purchased or have always been a part of my card collection as long as I can remember.

Contrary to my inability to pull Red Sox hits, I have incredible luck when it comes to the cards of my 2nd favorite team, the Chicago Cubs. Rather than doing a top 10, I decided to narrow it down to the best of the best by doing a top 5 instead. 

Besides, I bent the rules slightly by including 2 cards at spots #5 and #4, but the point I'm trying to make is pretty clear. Although some cards on this list were purchased at the Baseball card show, the Marlon Byrd stamp card, numbered to 10 on the back, as well as the cards at #3 and #1 were cards that I pulled out of a pack myself. 

Starting with the oldest cards to make this list, let's take a look at my top 5 Chicago Cubs cards.

#5 1969 Topps Billy Williams and Fergie Jenkins autographs

Careful research on the part of my Dad helped land us these 2 TTM autographs of 2 of the greatest Chicago Cubs players of all-time, both of whom played on the iconic 1969 team. I've since acquired another autograph of both of these superstars, but the authentic signed 1969 Topps cards will forever be my favorites.

If I remember correctly, the Billy Williams autograph was free while the Jenkins set us back just $10. That's 2 autographs of Hall of Famers and some of the greatest Chicago Cubs to ever play the game for half the price of a blaster box of cards. It's just pretty hard to believe that these 2 incredible cards came in behind 4 others.

#4 2002 Topps 206 Joe Tinker and Johnny Evers bat relics

This was probably the toughest decision to make, but ultimately, I decided to place the Tinker and Evers bat relics above the Williams and Jenkins autos. I mean, I could find other autos of those 2 superstars if I wanted to, but bat relics of 2 guys who played at the beginning of the 20th century are extremely hard to come by.

As a matter of fact, I wouldn't be surprised if 2002 Topps 206 produced some of the only bat relics ever made of Tinker and Evers. These cards are absolutely beautiful, especially thanks to the artwork on the minis. If only I could track down one of these of Frank Chance. Then, the iconic trio would be complete.

#3 2018 Bowman's Best Anthony Rizzo red auto

I've barely had this card in my possession for a month, yet it has already become one of my favorite cards in my entire collection. Pulled from a holiday mini box of 2018 Bowman's Best, I was able to land this spectacular red refractor autograph of Anthony Rizzo, serial numbered 2/10. 

As you can imagine, it was quite a moment when I pulled this incredible card from a pack, because it added to what is already a wide variety of Chicago Cubs cards, specifically, the cards on this list. In a year in which I added many impressive cards to my collection, this Anthony Rizzo autograph remains one of the best.

#2 1954 Topps Ernie Banks

It felt odd putting this card at #2 instead of #1, but I'm certain that I'm making the right decision. Regardless, it's still insane to think about the fact that I have, in my possession, a Beckett 3 graded rookie card of Ernie Banks AKA Mr. Cub, one of the greatest hitters in Baseball history.

Although the centering is the primary reason for the low grade, it's still surreal to me that I even have this iconic card. The 1954 Topps set may have been shaky, but Ernie Banks' rookie card is the high point of the entire set for a number of reasons, including the perfect use of the 2 photos and the retro Cubs logo in the top right corner.

#1 2017 Topps Heritage Clubhouse Collection Quad Relic Patch

This is not only the greatest Chicago Cubs card that I own but also the greatest card in my entire Baseball card collection as well as my favorite. Better yet, I actually pulled this hand-numbered 1/1 from a hobby box of 2017 Topps Heritage, a mere 4 months after the Cubs ended their 108-year World Series drought and defeated the Cleveland Indians in the Fall Classic.

Every player's jersey swatch on this 9.5 Beckett graded quad relic features a patch of 2 colors or more, hence why this is the 1/1 quad relic patch instead of the standard quad relic numbered to 10. As impressive as it was to see tri-color relics for Kris Bryant and Addison Russel, I was impressed to see Billy Williams appear on this card, especially with a duo-color jersey swatch as well.

Not a single card in my collection, whether I obtained it before or after the Cubs quad relic, has overtaken the 1/1 card is my favorite card in my entire collection. Plus, the fact that it features 4 Chicago Cubs makes this unbelievable card even more special.